{"id":96,"date":"2012-10-03T10:27:40","date_gmt":"2012-10-03T14:27:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/?page_id=96"},"modified":"2014-10-25T11:51:29","modified_gmt":"2014-10-25T15:51:29","slug":"rhine-and-mosell-rivers-cruise-2012-page-3","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/rhine-and-mosell-rivers-cruise-2012-page-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Rhine & Moselle Cruise – Page 03"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0This is some of the scenery we enjoyed:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0The Metternich Castle and Vineyards\"\"<\/a>\"\"<\/a>The Castle Metternich in\u00a0Beilstein<\/strong>\u00a0is partially in ruins but the tower is intact and part is still used as a residence. It dates from 1268, but was destroyed in 1689; The keep (round tower) was\u00a0built about 1200. (We didn’t stop here, but we did hike to another castle on a stop upstream in Cochen.)<\/strong><\/h2>\n

This is the town of Cochen with the Reichburg Castle above.<\/strong>\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

We docked here and spent most of the day here. \u00a0This is the Reichburg Castle up to which Mary Ann and hiked. We were told by our Program Manager that it would be a strenuous 30 minute hike. We did it in 20 easy minutes. \u00a0It is generally assumed that the castle was built around the year 1000.<\/strong>\"\"<\/a>In 1294, King Adolf of Nassau pawned the castle and the city of Cochem as well as the surrounding imperial property of about 50 villages to Boemund I of Trier in order to pay for his coronation as German emperor.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The rest of our Orange group took a bus to the castle. We met them there.<\/strong>\"\"<\/a>When the troops of King Louis XIV (called the Sun King) invaded the Rhine and the Moselle area in the war of succession of the Palatinate, Cochem town and castle was occupied in 1688. After the town had been completely occupied by French troops, the castle was set on fire, undermined and blown up in 1689.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The French Sun King\u2019s troops then almost completely destroyed the town of Cochem. Our ship is moored just beyond the bridge (along with 3 others).<\/strong>\"\"<\/a>The castle remained in ruins until 1868, when a Berlin business man: Louis Raven\u00e9, bought the castle grounds and the ruins. Shortly after his purchase he began to rebuild Cochem Castle incorporating the remains of the late Gothic buildings into the main castle structure.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Since 1978 the castle has been owned by the town of Cochem and is run by “Reichsburg Cochem Ltd.” It is situated on a promenent hill more than 300 feet above the Moselle and is a popular tourist attraction.<\/strong><\/p>\n

We hiked back to town along some narrow strees, past cutesy cafes, and on to the Market Square with it’s half timbered buildings and crowds of tour boat tourists.<\/strong>\"\"<\/a>\"\"<\/a>\"\"<\/a>Our final stop, before returning to our ship, was at a wine and liquor shop. \u00a0Here we found an interesting liquor dispensary: You would buy a bottle (plain or fancy) and have it filled from these dispensers. We did taste several samples of Moselle wine (dry, medium, and sweet). \u00a0We bought a medium sweet wine and took it back to the ship. \u00a0Contrary to big cruise ships, we could bring any alcoholic beverages aboard.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Back on the ship we got ready for dinner at 7PM. \u00a0Tonight’s 5 courses featured a main entree of “Roasted Pork Tenderloin topped with White Mushrooms and Ham Strips on Potato Rusti and Season Vegetables”<\/em>. \u00a0After dinner we retired to our “stateroom” to read and sleep away the remainder of Day 5.<\/strong><\/p>\n

On Day 6 we disembarked the ship at a town called Mehring inGermany and boarded buses by Group color (We are the Orange Group). \u00a0Our destination was the American Cemetery in Luxembourg, It was a drizzly morning and it was a somber gathering.\u00a0<\/strong>\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0The ship provided us with a very nice wreath for us to place in the Chapel. Those of us who served in the Military were invited to participate in the Wreath laying Ceremony. \u00a0The Cemetery Superintendent said some very touching words about service to country and of those died and are resting in cemeteries like this throughout the world. I got a little teary-eyed. I’m the grey haired guy on the right.<\/strong>\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Under a US-Luxembourg treaty signed in 1951 the US government was granted free use in perpetuity of the land covered by the cemetery, without taxation.\u00a0The cemetery, which is 50.5 acres in extent contains the remains of 5,076 American service members. On 22 occasions two brothers rest side-by-side in adjacent graves. Most of the interred died during the\u00a0Battle of the Bulge<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0which was fought nearby in winter 1944\/spring 1945.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Two flagpoles overlook the graves area. Situated between the two flagpoles lies the grave of General\u00a0<\/span>George S. Patton, jr<\/span>.<\/a>\u00a0His grave was moved here because visitors were trampling the place trying to locate it in amongst the other graves.<\/span><\/span><\/strong>\"\"<\/a>We departed the American Cemetery and continued on to Luxembourg City.<\/strong><\/p>\n

This is the\u00a0Monument of Remembrance (aka The G\u00eblle Fra War Memorial) in Constitution Square, in Luxembourg City.\u00a0It is dedicated to the thousands of Luxembourgers who volunteered for service in the\u00a0armed forces<\/span><\/a>\u00a0of the\u00a0Allied Powers<\/span><\/a>\u00a0during\u00a0World War I<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/strong>\"\"<\/a>Atop of the obelisk stands a\u00a0<\/span>gilded<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>bronze<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>statue<\/span><\/a>\u00a0of a lady, holding out a\u00a0<\/span>laurel wreath<\/span><\/a>\u00a0as if placing it upon the head of the nation. At the foot of the obelisk are two bronze figures, representing those Luxembourger soldiers that volunteered to serve for\u00a0<\/span>France<\/span><\/a>; one lies at the base of the statue, having died in service of his country, whilst the other sits, mourning his dead compatriot.<\/span><\/strong><\/address>\n

We moved on with our Orange Group City Guide and visited the Notre Dame Cathedral near\u00a0Constitution Square.<\/strong>\"\"<\/a>Luxembourg is a small city and this Cathedral was tucked in amongst some larger buildings. Other than the stained glass windows, the church was very plain.\u00a0\u00a0its cornerstone was laid in 1613.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

We then trudged to the Bock Fortress.<\/strong>\"\"<\/a>The\u00a0Bock\u00a0is a\u00a0promontory<\/span><\/a>\u00a0in the north-eastern corner of\u00a0Luxembourg City<\/span><\/a>‘s old historical district. Offering a natural fortification, its rocky cliffs tower above the\u00a0River Alzette<\/span><\/a>\u00a0which surrounds it on three sides. It was here that\u00a0Count Siegfried<\/span><\/a>\u00a0built his Castle in 963, providing a basis for the development of the town which became Luxembourg.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

T<\/span><\/strong>here are caves in Luxembourg City around and under the Bock. The are called the Casemates.\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>They have been hewn out of the rock face and could\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>shelter an army as well as a bunch of cannons. They helped the\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>Luxembourgers defend the city a number of times.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

This is part of the “Place des Armes” in the center of Luxembourg City. \u00a0This is the “go to” place for lunch and\/or dinner.<\/strong>\"\"<\/a>On a personal note: \u00a0When I worked for the Norton Company in Worcester, MA, I was in charge of several IT persons who did foreign assignments. One of these “Expats” was Bill Flack. \u00a0He worked at a Norton facility in Bascharage (near Luxembourg City). \u00a0I had the pleasure of visiting Bill several times to monitor his project and well-being.<\/strong><\/p>\n

It was a tough job. \u00a0He was doing a great job and was apparently quite happy in Luxembourg. \u00a0We would celebrate his and my good fortune by dining in one of the many \u00a0fine restaurants in the Place des Armes. \u00a0Tough assignment, eh?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Here is our Orange Group in the Place des Armes\u00a0<\/strong>trying to figure out where to have lunch. Amazingly, we were given 15 euros apiece to spend for lunch. \u00a0Mary Ann and I had made sandwiches at breakfast to eat at lunch time so we ended up with 30 euros in our pocket.<\/strong>\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Later in the aftrernoon, we re boarded the bus to meet our ship which was now moored at Remich, when we returned we were treated to a dinner that included an entree of “Oven Roasted \u00a0Turkey with Natural Gravy, Roasted Garlic mashed Potatoes, Breaded Stuffing with Apples and Celery and served with Green Beans<\/em>“. A regular Thanksgiving dinner.<\/strong><\/p>\n

To top it off we had “Apple Crumble with Vanilla Ice Cream.and Butterscotch<\/em>” for dessert.<\/strong>\"\"<\/a>What a way to end our 6th day!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Go to Page 04<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0This is some of the scenery we enjoyed: \u00a0The Metternich Castle and VineyardsThe Castle Metternich in\u00a0Beilstein\u00a0is partially in ruins but the tower is intact and part is still used as a residence. It dates from 1268, but was destroyed in … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-96","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/96","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=96"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/96\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":756,"href":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/96\/revisions\/756"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/prstevens.stonehippo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=96"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}